Journal

Volume 17, Issue 4 (December 31, 2016)

4 articles

• Why Binary Merge?
  by Koji Arikawa
  J. CS. 2016, 17(4), 499-546;
  Abstract Linguists have accumulated evidence for binary merge. This paper adds mathematical reason. The computational procedures of human natural language (CHL) choose binary merge because it can contain more information, and lacks optimal balance. Nature organizes network currents to minimize information lo... [Read more].
  Abstract Linguists have accumulated evidence for binary merge. This paper adds mathematical reason. The computational procedures of human natural language (CHL) choose binary merge because it can contain more information, and lacks optimal balance. Nature organizes network currents to minimize information loss. This is the physical principle of minimal computation (MC). CHL obeys MC. Nature has created CHL in the human brain. Nature has selected binary merge whose balance is not optimal, and information loss (error) is not minimized. However, this unsettled unbalance (asymmetry) of binary merge drives the in nite growth of binary trees. [Collapse]
• The Effects of Frequency on Pronoun Production
  by Sin Hang Lau & Heeju Hwang
  J. CS. 2016, 17(4), 547-569;
  Abstract The present study aims to examine whether pronoun production is influenced by referent frequency. We used a story continuation task and manipulated the frequency of referent nouns in one-entity (the woman(HF)/ postman(LF) skated to the house) and two-entity contexts (HF Subject-LF Object: the girl(H... [Read more].
  Abstract The present study aims to examine whether pronoun production is influenced by referent frequency. We used a story continuation task and manipulated the frequency of referent nouns in one-entity (the woman(HF)/ postman(LF) skated to the house) and two-entity contexts (HF Subject-LF Object: the girl(HF) calmed the monk(LF) & LF Subject-HF Object: the postman(LF) warned the mother(HF)). We found that frequency had no effect in one-entity contexts. However, the frequency e ect was signi cant in two- entity contexts. When the subject had a high frequency while the object had a low frequency (HF Subject-LF Object), the rate of pronoun use increased for subject but decreased for object referents, compared to when the subject had a low frequency while the object had a high frequency (LF Subject-HF Object). That is, participants tended to use more pronouns for high frequency referents. This suggests that frequency is a factor that modulates pronoun production in the presence of multiple entities. We discuss the implications of our results in terms of existing theories. [Collapse]
• I Mean What I Mean, Not What I Say: A Case of Double Entendres in EkeGusii
  by Isaac Nilson Opande & Evans Gesura Mecha
  J. CS. 2016, 17(4), 571-605;
  Abstract Words or phrasal constructions are indicative of the way given communities experience and perceive their environment and exploit it to create meaning. Meanings arise from creative cognitive processing of which polysemisation, which involves in some way mapping of conceptual blends or integration, is... [Read more].
  Abstract Words or phrasal constructions are indicative of the way given communities experience and perceive their environment and exploit it to create meaning. Meanings arise from creative cognitive processing of which polysemisation, which involves in some way mapping of conceptual blends or integration, is one of the means employed. This study investigates cases of double entendre, a form of polysemisation, in EkeGusii with the aim of accounting for the cognitive processes entailed in the conceptualization of the natal process (or the maternity cycle) of human beings using conceptual integration theory. Corpora for this study were elicited from two EkeGusii FM stations and analysed based on the cognitive linguistic theory of Conceptual Blending. The information gathered in this study could enrich EkeGusii semantics and understanding of the conceptual component of the speakers of the language in order to make a contribution to the teaching of the language and its maintenance. [Collapse]
• Pragmatic or Syntactic Ziji? Evidence from Language Transfer
  by Darcy Sperlich
  J. CS. 2016, 17(4), 607-652;
  Abstract This article aims to understand the place of syntax and pragmatics in regard to Chinese ziji. While there has been continued theoretical debate on this topic, there is little experimental evidence to verify whether syntax or pragmatics plays the defining role in the regulation of ziji. This study ac... [Read more].
  Abstract This article aims to understand the place of syntax and pragmatics in regard to Chinese ziji. While there has been continued theoretical debate on this topic, there is little experimental evidence to verify whether syntax or pragmatics plays the defining role in the regulation of ziji. This study achieves this by investigating the interpretation of the long-distance reflexive ziji by English and Korean learners of Chinese. English learners of Chinese are hypothesized to negatively transfer their syntactic anaphoric strategies into their L2 Chinese, while Korean learners of Chinese are hypothesized to positively transfer their pragmatic anaphoric strategies in their L2 Chinese, as Chinese reflexive pronouns are pragmatically regulated. The data gathered includes antecedent judgements and psycholinguistic observations, finding that Korean learners of Chinese are at an advantage over their English counterparts. This is discussed against current syntactic and pragmatic anaphoric theory, arguing that this evidence supports the theory that ziji is pragmatic in nature. [Collapse]